Technical Field
The present invention relates to storing a viscous product and a propellant in a container and using the propellant (e.g., pressurized gas) to dispense the product from a dispenser located at the bottom of the container.
Background
Viscous products (e.g., syrups, foods, beverages, purees, sauces, dips, frosting, whipped cream, soft cheese, and oil) are desirable to many consumers. Additionally, foamed products can be especially desirable due to their texture (e.g., light mouthfeel), their ability to provide a greater volume of product with fewer calories, and their ability to provide a more satisfying consumption experience. For example, a typical foamed product can comprise about 30% to about 75% gas by volume, which can reduce calories by 75% compared to the same volume of a non-foamed product.
However, many of the advantages of a foamed product are lost if the foam is lost. Thus, the inventors have sought to provide a better storage and delivery system for foamed products that helps to preserve the foam. As the inventors conducted their work, they realized that certain containers were not feasible for storing foamed products. For example, the inventors determined that storing foamed product in a typical jar (e.g., mason jar) is thermodynamically unstable. When using a typical jar, it is practically impossible to maintain a desired amount of gas in the foamed product for its intended shelf life and for a period of time during which the product is intended to be consumed. For example, the loss of foam can be especially acute after a consumer opens a jar.
Because foam in a jar is thermodynamically unstable, it is desirable to store foamed products using a different storage device. One example is an aerosol container in which a pressurized gas is stored with a liquid product. When the liquid product is dispensed its pressure drop across a dispenser valve causes the dissolved gas in the product to come out of solution and form a foam, resulting in a foamed product.
Aerosol containers are advantageous because they can be used to maintain satisfactory levels of dissolved gas (e.g., aeration) over a shelf life and a subsequent period of consumption. Accordingly, product can be dispensed from an aerosol container to form a foamed product.
However, providing a foamed product using aerosol technology can be problematic. The technology typically involves a beverage component, liquid food component, or solid food component (e.g., whipped cream, syrup, sauce, batter, or dip) and a pressurized gas propellant (e.g. air, nitrous oxide and/or carbon dioxide) in the same container. The container is stored sitting on its bottom end, which comprises a base. Meanwhile, the top end, which has a valve for dispensing product, is pointed up. In this condition, some of the gas phase propellant will naturally rise to the top of the container to form a pressurized, gaseous head space. When the container is later turned upside-down to dispense product, some of the propellant in the headspace can be trapped near the valve by the viscous, liquid/solid product phase. Then, when the valve is actuated, propellant from the head space exits without any product. As a result, product can be stranded in the container without sufficient propellant to ever be dispensed.
Accordingly, it would be advantageous to provide a method and apparatus for storing and dispensing foamed products that helps to prevent or avoid dispensing propellant from the head space before the product phase has been dispensed. It would also be advantageous if the method and apparatus prevented or avoided stranding product in an aerosol container. For example, it would be beneficial if the invention could maintain a product between a head space and a dispenser of the aerosol container.
It would also be advantageous if the method and apparatus facilitated the storage, delivery, cooking, and serving of a more convenient food product. For example, it would be desirable if the invention helped enable consumers to avoid messy preparations of a product (e.g., preparing pancake batter) by giving consumers access to foamed versions of the product. As another example, it would be beneficial if the invention made it easier to deliver a single pancake or cupcake serving for cooking without wasting ingredients that are not easily subdivided, such as eggs or liquid-ingredient packets. It would also be beneficial if the invention facilitated delivering a single serving of a product without having to calculate the necessary proportion of ingredients from a recipe intended to produce more servings.
Additionally, it would be useful if the invention could help reduce the formulation cost of a product by facilitating the storage and delivery of a foamed version of the product. For example, it would be advantageous if the foamed version of the product reduced the cost per volume of the product in a way that still satisfied consumers. It would also be advantageous if the foamed product enabled consumers to choose more expensive ingredients, higher quality ingredients, healthier ingredients, or less processed ingredients, while paying the same or less for a given volume of product.
As another benefit, it would be useful if some embodiments of the invention could be used with existing containers of product and propellant that consumers have already purchased. For example, it could be beneficial if the invention comprised a base could be used with common aerosol container shapes, or if the base could be used with specifically shaped containers that a particular manufacturer has already produced.
It would also be useful if some embodiments of the invention comprised a base with a proprietary fitting so that the dispenser could not be used easily with differently branded products. For example, this could help prevent brand-related confusion among consumers due to the base from one manufacturer being used with products and/or containers from another manufacturer.
Similarly, it would be advantageous if the invention provided a lid to keep the dispenser clean. For example, it would be beneficial if the lid could be used to separate a dispenser from a supporting surface upon which the base rests. It would also be beneficial if the lid could prevent tainting of the product, contamination of the dispenser, dripping of the product onto the supporting surface and/or leakage of the product onto the supporting surface (e.g., a display shelf, refrigerator shelf, or countertop). It would also be advantageous if the invention had a safety feature to prevent the dispenser from being actuated if the lid were in place.
Additionally, it would be advantageous if the invention provided a more ergonomic and sanitary option for dispensing product. For example, the tilt valves that are typically used with aerosol containers are actuated directly by a user's finger. As a result, a user's finger can become tired or strained by repeated or lengthy use, and if a user has not sanitized the finger, bacteria, viruses, or other pathogens on the finger can be left behind on the dispenser and/or be mixed into product when it is dispensed. Accordingly, it would also be advantageous if the invention provided an actuator (e.g., trigger) and a base configured to facilitate easier dispensing and dosing of a product. Likewise, it would be advantageous if the base comprised a material that were sufficiently flexible and resilient to serve as an actuator. It would also be advantageous if the base and actuator could be integral, for example, if the entire base were manufactured in a single mold using an injection molding process.
As another advantage, it would be useful if the invention comprised a base that could be made from a material that is sufficiently durable to be used successively with multiple containers. It would also be useful if the base were made from a material that is sufficiently environmentally friendly (e.g., biodegradable) and/or sufficiently inexpensive that the base would be practical even if it were only used once.
Furthermore, it would be advantageous if the invention included an opening, transparent portion, and/or translucent portion in the base to facilitate viewing a target of the dispensed product and to facilitate clean-up after dispensing the product.
Likewise, it would be beneficial if one embodiment of the invention conserved packaging material and reduced production costs while providing a base of that is large enough to provide a stable support surface for a container. For example, it would be advantageous if the invention provided a base that was sufficiently large to maintain a container in a desired storage configuration. However, it would also be advantageous if the base were smaller at the top and then got larger toward the bottom so that the amount of material used could be reduced relative to a more uniformly shaped base.